This place is sort of a catch all of sorts. Seems like it is trying to appeal to too many people and styles all at the same time. I didn't have any food, but the food people had around me looked good. I had their Irish Red Ale, and quite frankly, I brew better beer. I will have to try a few others to see what they are like before really making a full judgment, but I've heard similar things from other people as well.

A: My second visit here in little over a year reared no improvements. Walking in and you can hear a pin drop. Locals at the bar, not very busy and eerily quiet. It's like a time warp or something. Uneasy and odd.

S: While the servers are nice I have seen bouts of servers arguing at the bar. On my most recent and last visit there were two servers working and two in the back prepping food I suppose. On this, my last visit, we sat down and it took ten minutes before we received service. The staff was running around frantically screaming about how overwhelmed they are. Two servers taking care of fifteen people and they are stressed out. So stressed out than when the server comes to our our table she asks what we want, we say beer and she says "oh good, you just want beer". Seriously? No food was ever offered.

S: About 7 house beers covering the standards(IPA, Porter,Amber). I had the Winter Warmer and the IPA on my first visit and what I believe to be a cask IIPA on my last visit.

That's right, Shelton has a brewpub. And it would appear to be a thriving beer parlor. The former Shelton Motor Company now houses a 7-bbl brewery crafting eight house ales. For the most part they're fine, drinkable ales crafted by a young Seibel Institute grad named Adam Orrick.

The pub is centrally located at the corner of First and Grove where a curved wall of glass bricks provides a quick landmark. Inside is a bar with copper detailing, a back room with views of the brewery, and an upper loft accessed by duel stairwells.

Grove Street's food menu is surprisingly comprehensive and includes seafood cocktails, potpies, brats and dogs, a pickle platter, and full entrees. They also serve a wide assortment of exotic teas. In fact, the name "Brewhouse" was chosen instead of brewery to suggest multiple beverage specialties. Thus their logo is, "Beer, tea, and revelry." For the time being, revelry is strictly BYO. But the room facing 1st Street will soon open for live music and dancing.

Beers average about 6% ABV and trend towards popular styles. The porter is notably artistic and complex though some ales lack adequate carbonation. Spire cider and a non-alcoholic beer are also served.

It's a healthy sign that craft beer has taken root in Shelton. I enjoy the big wooden trusses at Grove Street, and the bar stools are perhaps the softest, most cushiony I've ever parked on. Tables are adorned with electric candles that I mistook for real until closing time when the staff turned them off with the flick of a switch. I noted lots of unused taps and floor space at Grove Street. The place is certain to evolve in the months and years ahead.